Marry Me
by gdangel
Summary: Yuffie has a bad day and Reno tries to make it better. The two end up getting engaged and trying to fool Cloud and the gang into thinking that they are in love, when really it's more of an arragement. But what happens when the arrangement starts to become real to them?
1. Simple and Uncomplicated

AN: Hey! I've been sitting on this story for a while and I finally got around to writing it. It's something a little different, but I love these characters so I wanted to put something together with all of them. It's Reno and Yuffie. Hope you enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII.

Chapter 1: Simple and Uncomplicated

"Yo," Reno greeted Yuffie for the dozenth time that week.

It was a simple one word greeting. It suited Reno.

He worked like crazy when things came down to it, but he never overextended himself. When he was off work, he didn't go out of his way to earn that gold star for the week. Instead, he left work at work. And when he was working, he left his home life at home. He was simple and uncomplicated like that.

That was what Yuffie liked the most about Reno.

How nothing else mattered, but that moment. There was no added drama, no added responsibility. Just Reno.

"Hiya!" Yuffie smiled, yes smiled.

The turk had grown on her. He'd been a pain in the butt when Avalanche and Shinra were at each other's throats, but things had gotten better since the whole Kadaj ordeal. Shinra was still a little shady, but Reno and Rude seemed to be okay when they weren't planning on rebuilding Shinra corp and were focusing on rebuilding the world instead.

Seeing him and the rest of her friends perked Yuffie up a little, but her thoughts still went back to her most recent argument with her father.

"Tifa? You got any Sake?" Yuffie hollered as she plopped down in a seat next to Cid who smirked at her as he took another drag of his cigarette. Tifa yelled at him about smoking in the bar all the time, but it never seemed to matter to him, so most of the time he got away with it.

"Sake? Aren't you a little young for that stuff?" Cid teased.

Yuffie couldn't help it, she wasn't in the mood, "Aren't you a little bit old to be smoking gramps? We don't want you getting bronchitis, now do we?"

Cid normally would've given Yuffie a piece of his mind, but seeing as Yuffie didn't usually come off so angry, he decided better of it. Yuffie was normally sunshines and rainbows, not skulls and crossbones.

Reno on the other hand, had no idea what he was getting into when he commented on her behavior, "Whoah! Who stole all your materia?!"

Tifa set the Sake down on the bar and mouthed, 'Run,' but it was too late.

Yuffie stood up waving her arms around as she yelled, "I'm a mature adult Reno! I care about more things than just materia all the time! I also am perfectly happy right now!"

Tifa slapped her forehead. The dark haired woman behind the bar had seen Yuffie get angry more times then she could count and every time Yuffie got upset she was a force to be reckon with. Reno knew this too from fighting them back in the day, but now with them as a an ally everything was different. For whatever reason an angry Yuffie didn't scare him as much as it should. Crossing her arms, Tifa prayed that someone would be able to calm Yuffie down before the turks stopped giving Tifa all their hard earned money.

"Well, sorry for asking, yo," Reno looked away his eyes focusing on something else, "Thought I could cheer you up. I just meant that you're usually more upbeat than the rest of us poor, pathetic, negative Nancys. I was going to give you this materia I found the other day, but I guess I'll just save it for someone who will really appreciate it."

"Materia!" Yuffie didn't care how bad she felt, those words were magic, "Gimme!"

Tifa silently smiled and mouthed, 'thank you' before she grabbed a few more drinks for her other customers. If there was one thing Yuffie couldn't resist, it was materia

"Whoah! Hold on a second," Reno smirked, "You might be my buddy, but don't think I'm going to just give you this materia for free. Specially, not after the way you just treated me."

Tifa almost hit her head on the counter as she shot straight up from grabbing a special bottle of vodka underneath it. She wasn't sure what she was seeing. Or what was about to happen. Yuffie wasn't in a good mood and was now being teased with materia. Things were not looking good for the red haired man across from her.

Bitting her lip, Tifa rubbed the back of her head and tried to remember to breathe. She didn't need another fight inside the bar, she'd just finished patching up from the last one.

"Oh! You meanie!" Yuffie crossed her arms, but then she reconsidered and put on a smile, "Reno, you know I didn't really mean it, don't you? I'm just upset because of some things that happened earlier today that's all."

Crash! The bottle of Vodka landed on the floor, and Cid burst out laughing. Tifa was so sure Yuffie was going to pummel Reno. Or at least steal Reno's Materia. But out of all the things Tifa thought up, Yuffie admitting anything was wrong was definitely not an option. Surely, Yuffie was planning something. Unless…? Tifa blinked and then laughed herself, no there was no way.

Yuffie couldn't have feelings for Reno that would be too bizarre.

Ignoring Tifa's little outburst, Reno knew he had Yuffie hook line and sinker, "Okay, take a walk with me and tell me what happened and the materia is all yours."

Cid nearly choked on his cigarette. Reno was going to end up in a ditch somewhere with no materia at all. Cid was almost certain of it.

No one in the room knew what Yuffie was really thinking. Yuffie, in fact, wasn't planning on taking any materia. She was too worn out to try any thievery for the day. And honestly, after the day she had, she was so bummed out, she was just looking for something or someone to cheer her up.

She went over Reno in her head. Simple and uncomplicated sounded good about now.

Still, the thought of taking a walk through the streets of Midgar and made Yuffie cringe. The people there might not have been sick with the stigma anymore, but they were still homeless and weak. All those faces of people who needed homes and food always got to her. Especially, after everything she just went through with her Dad.

"I don't know," Yuffie turned away. She was refusing a chance at materia.

Tifa's ears caught what Yuffie was saying. Yuffie refusing materia? Tifa finished cleaning up the mess of Vodka on the floor, and waited. She refused to believe what her ears just heard. It couldn't be real. She was dreaming. She was almost sure of it.

Cid put out his cigarette. He'd heard Yuffie too.

Yuffie took a big swig of Sake, almost choking on the stuff as she shook her head, "No I'll live without the materia thank you very much."

Cid almost fell out of his chair and he looked to Tifa for help with the situation. She nodded finally coming to terms with Yuffie's situation. Yuffie must've been feeling really bad if she wasn't going after materia.

Tifa had seen a lot of things go down in her bar, but Yuffie giving up materia had to be a first. In fact, it sort of scared her.

So much, that Tifa slammed her palms unto the table, her eyes dead serious as they looked upon Yuffie's sulking figure, "You're going or I won't serve you one more drop of Sake, Yuffie."

This wasn't that big of a deal. Yuffie could live without Sake.

"And I will have Cloud hunt down every last piece of materia you own."

Cid smirked lighting up another cigarette, "And I'll help the idiot find every last one."

Yuffie doubted that Cloud could find every last piece of materia she owned. She had hidden them so well, even she couldn't find them sometimes. And Cid was just an old chain smoker. So who cared what he said.

As Yuffie was about to comment, Cloud walked through the door with an arm full of materia.

Yuffie's eyes went from Tifa to Cloud and to the materia. Reno smirked. Things were definitely getting interesting.

"Were these yours Yuffie? I found them-"

"Okay! Okay! I'm going! I'm going! Keep your pants on!" Yuffie jumped taking Reno by the hand.

Of course, Reno hadn't the slightest clue why Yuffie's friends wanted her to go get some materia when they didn't even know if Reno was lying about it or not, but Reno shrugged it off.

Reno heard Cloud say to Tifa, "What happened to her?" just before Reno was dragged out of the bar.

"Whoah! Slow down! You don't even know where I'm taking you," Reno laughed as he took the lead away from the hyper girl and she stopped in her tracks.

"If this is a trick," Yuffie narrowed her eyes at him.

Reno sighed, he couldn't blame her. After everything that happened even he wouldn't trust himself either.

"You can either follow me, or you can take your chances with your friends again, and I'm sure they won't be as nice about asking you what's wrong as I will. After all, whatever's wrong, I probably did worse," Reno shrugged.

Yuffie shook her head and began following him, "I don't want to talk about it. I just want my materia. That's the only reason I'm coming along Reno! And if you try anything, I'm not afraid to use my ninja skills, you hear me!"

Reno just kept moving forward and shrugged, "Fine don't talk, but I want to see you back to your good ole hyper, crazy self by the end of this you hear me! And that's an order."

Yuffie just stuck her tongue out at him, "Whatever you say Turkey!"

Reno laughed, "Turkey? How original. What are you five?"

Yuffie wanted to comment, but she just didn't have the energy to keep fighting with him. In fact she felt like all she wanted to do was crawl back into her bed and pretend the day never happened. After all, what was the point anyway?

Still, she kept her legs moving forward, and she kept following Reno. Even if she didn't say a word, it didn't matter. Reno didn't seem to mind. She didn't even know why she was following him. All she knew was that it felt like she should.

And that was how they ended up in the ruins of the Shinra building, with Reno taking another drag of a cigarette he'd just lit up as Yuffie sat in silence for what seemed like a year, when it was really only like ten minutes.

"Why did you choose the ruins?" Yuffie asked Reno who hopped over some debris as he climbed through yet another mountain of rubble.

Midgar had decided to leave the ruins as a reminder of Sephiroth and what happens when the people of the world get too greedy.

"I come here sometimes," Reno stopped at the top of a mountain of junk where there was space for them to sit together, "Clears my head, reminds me of how fragile the world really is. Reminds me how strong we gotta be to beat back Jenova and Sephiroth over and over again, so this doesn't happen again. Take your pick."

"I thought you always left your work stuff at work Reno," Yuffie teased.

The turk flushed, "Well I…" he pulled at his collar a little bit, and sighed, "I do. When it comes to Shinra. But I don't know. Sephiroth wasn't my fault directly, but… I guess I still feel a little responsible for the whole thing. I might not care what happens to anyone, but myself, however… It would really suck to wake up one morning and not have Tifa's bar to go to again. And well the whole dead thing isn't really my style either."

"So why did you bring me here," Yuffie rolled her eyes emphasizing the word "me".

"I don't know. Guess maybe I thought because it helped me clear my head, maybe it could help you with yours," Reno crossed his arms, "Unless you'd rather drink away your troubles?"

"Does that even work?" Yuffie blinked.

Reno shrugged, "If it did, I'd be King of the world right now. I'd have my own city called Renoville."

"Renoville?" Yuffie laughed.

"Hey, it could happen," Reno shrugged.

Yuffie shook her head and sat looking out at the sun setting. All the color washed over the ruins making it look like they were on fire. He was right about the ruins. They were a reminder of how sucky things could've been, and a reminder of how the planet is a lot more vulnerable than one might think. Everything gone in an instant.

Sighing, she opened her mouth. Reno had let her in on his thoughts, she guessed that she could probably tell him a little about what was going on in her head.

"You don't have talk to me about anything going on, you know. We could just… Sit here," Reno seemed to read her mind.

Yuffie smiled, "That's okay. The more I keep it inside, the more it'll get to me."

Relieved, Reno threw his head back, "Oh thank Midgar, I thought it was going to be really boring sitting up here with you."

Yuffie stuck her tongue out, but then she allowed herself to be serious, "Dad wants me to settle down, stop being a ninja and take over Wutai."

"Hasn't he always wanted that?" Reno rose an eyebrow.

"Not like this. He started walking me through the streets so I could see all the people who needed a leader, who needed help. Not from warriors, but from people willing to rebuild this world. So," Yuffie sighed, "There's that and the fact that he started to set up meetings for me to these all these old guys he wants me to marry because he believes that I'm unfit to rule and bring the people of Wutai the stability they need in order for all of the people to get out of the streets and into homes."

There was silence again.

Yuffie felt better admitting all of that out loud. She just hoped Reno wouldn't go back and tell everyone at Tifa's. She didn't need her friends bringing up dramas that Yuffie could do very little about.

"You could get married?" Reno asked.

Yuffie laughed, "Yeah, to that old guy who smelled like mushrooms and soy sauce, or maybe the one with only one little, curl,y gray hair on his entire body. The guy didn't even have eyebrows. I mean how old does a person have to be, to be hairless like that?

Sarcasm was heavy in her voice as she continued, "That sounds like the dream life."

He didn't know why he came up with the idea. Maybe it was the booze talking. Maybe it was because she was the first person he ever had up there in the ruins alone. Sure, he'd been up there with Rude and the turks, but that was a job.

Reno shook his head, "This is gonna sound absolutely crazy, but why don't you marry me?"

Yuffie almost fell off the ruins. If she had any Sake she was sure it would've been spat all over everything in her path. He couldn't be serious.

"Marry you!?" Yuffie gasped for air, but all she found was more laughter.

"Oh come one it's not that funny. I am devilishly handsome!" Reno smirked, "And you totally want me."

"Reno! I can't marry you!" Yuffie shouted jumping to her feet.

"Why not?" Reno looked up at her.

"Because I don't love you," Yuffie stated.

'Although, I'm not saying that I could never love you,' Yuffie heard her mind say…

"See, you'll fall in love with me. Besides it's not like you love those other guys either right?" Reno stood up.

"Did I say that out loud?" Yuffie squeaked, nervous at how close Reno was to her.

"Yuffie, let's be serious here for second," Reno closed his eyes, "People marry for many other reasons than love. I'm always on missions for Shinra trying to pay back the world for the evil that we've done to it. And you want to rule Wutai to make it a better place and still be a materia loving Ninja. If you marry me you wouldn't have to be one of those wives you fear of being. One who is seen, but not heard."

"Um hello! Feminism? Ever heard of it? Women shouldn't have to marry anyone if they don't choose to," Yuffie huffed. She was sure he was joking. But the more he talked the more he seemed serious, and if he was serious…

Reno put up both his hands, "I never said you had to do anything. I was just offering a solution to both of our problems."

Yuffie blinked. Reno had a problem he needed to be married for?

"What's in this for you?" Yuffie hesitated.

"The pleasure of having someone like you in my life, of course," Reno smirked pulling Yuffie into his arms. She'd never realized how strong they were before.

Yuffie refused to let his charm be the only thing to take her in, "Reno I'm serious."

Reno sighed and let go of her, "I… The truth is Rude and Elena got together. Tseng is pretty much work, work, work, and I guess… I guess I'm lonely. Now don't go telling everybody that Yuffie, but it's the truth. I think, I just want to know that there is someone at home waiting for me. Someone to come home to, you know? I don't want to spend my whole life wasted on drinks and walks by myself all the time."

"Rude and Elena? How did that happen? I thought she had a crush on Tseng," Yuffie blinked.

"She did, but things happen I guess. Rude and Elena got thrown together on a few assignments when I was out of town and I guess somehow they hit it off," Reno scratched his head, "Yeah I don't really get it either, but they seem happy."

"What about love Reno?" Yuffie looked at him honestly.

"Rude and Elena? I don't think they- Ow!"

Yuffie punched Reno's shoulder. She'd barely tapped him, but he acted like it was the end of the word.

Ignoring him she explained her point, "I meant don't you want to fall in love?"

"I don't think I really need love. Not that I really know what it is anyway," Reno shrugged, "And you said you thought there might be a possibility of you falling for me. So you've got nothing to worry about."

"You weren't supposed to hear that," Yuffie looked away.

Reno gently put his hands on her face and guided it back so that she was looking at him.

"Come on Yuffie. I could bring you home materia all the time. You'd be free to be yourself. And I have someone to hang out with every now and again. Does that sound so terrible?" Reno pleaded.

He couldn't believe what was happening. It was like he was watching a dream. Like he was there, but he wasn't.

Was this really what he wanted?

Reno thought, 'no'. No he didn't want a loveless marriage, but it was all he would allow himself. Love made you weak. Love made you stupid. And love never lasts.

"This is crazy," Yuffie shook her head, "Alright Reno you win. We're getting married!"

"That's the spirit!" Reno shouted one fist in the air before he squeezed her in his arms.

A part of him was disappointed that Yuffie agreed, but there was something else going on inside of him as well that he couldn't explain if he tried. All he knew was that it made him sort of excited.

Yuffie shook her head as she squeezed Reno back.

"Thank you," she laughed, "This is all crazy, and definitely not how I pictured myself getting married… But okay, if you're serious about this, then I don't see why not?"

Yuffie paused. Was this really what she wanted?

She didn't know what love was. She knew it was special and of course she knew that true love wasn't out there waiting for everyone, but did she owe it to herself to find out if it was out there for her?

Reno looked at the ninja in his arms. She wasn't even trying to take his materia, and she agreed to marrying him. Him a turk, who not too long ago was her enemy, and even though they were on better terms, he wouldn't exactly call her a friend. And yet… With her there in his arms…

He got caught up in the moment and leaned in and kissed her.

A feeling rose up inside of them. A feeling that neither one thought they would feel. One that neither recognized, but one that they were surprised they enjoyed.

When they broke, the stars were shinning brilliantly in the sky. Yuffie bit her lip nervously.

She had either made the worst or the best mistake of her life.

"Oh! About your materia, I've got something better planned so you'll have to wait for it," Reno smiled.

Yuffie eyed him curiously. She could just swipe it, but he'd been so full of surprises she figured she would just wait it out. She was curious what her fiancé would do.

Fiancé.

That word etched itself a permanent home in her mind that night. The only thing left to do was tell the others.

Yuffie bit her lip again. That probably wasn't going to go over well. So much for simple and uncomplicated.


	2. Good Luck Yuffie

AN: Here's another chapter for you all! Read and review please and thank you.

Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII or any of it's characters.

Chapter 2: Good Luck Yuffie!

"You did what!?" Tifa shouted.

"I got engaged," the words sounded strange coming out of her mouth.

"To Reno?" Tifa looked at Yuffie.

Things were definitely not okay.

Yuffie came in, ordered Sake and left with a Turk who used to be their enemy, only to came back to see her a few days later with news that Yuffie was going to marry said Turkey.

Vincent spat out his drink from the other end of the bar, "Is that guy even marriage material?"

"Lay off my fiancé!" Yuffie stuck her tongue out.

"Sorry," Vincent's attention went back to his little corner.

"She's just joking Vincent. I mean she obviously can't be serious," Barret laughed as he stretched out on his stool, "You're just pulling our legs so you can-"

Cloud walked into the bar, the familiar chime ringing throughout the space. His attention went straight to Yuffie.

"What did you do with Reno?" Cloud was at her side in a flash and Yuffie instantly felt her stomach knot up. She hadn't realized how upset everyone would be that she was marrying Reno. After all, she'd done plenty of dumb stuff in the past. Surely, this wasn't the worst thing she had done.

She was also curious if Cloud had a hidden microphone or hid in the vents somewhere around the bar. He just kept showing up at the most random times with information he shouldn't even be aware of yet. But her suspicions would have to be put on hold for the moment.

"We're on good terms with the Turks now that they're trying to make amends, aren't we?" Yuffie refused to look up. Her stomach still sick.

"For now, but they still work for Rufus. That guy… Yuffie we don't trust them. You need to end this whole thing now," Cloud growled.

Wincing, Yuffie threw her hands in the air, "Oh, come on Cloud, is that really fair? Reno's given us breaks and helped us out plenty of times. Sure he's got a crazy job, but it pays the bills. He really isn't all that bad. I mean yeah, Shinra is bad news, but Reno's just… Well, he's not dangerous."

"If he was working and Shinra said to kill you, he would without a second thought," Cloud retorted.

"Whoah! Cloud, let's give Reno a little more credit than that," Tifa held up her hands.

"So now you're on her side?" Cloud crossed his arms, his eyes steeling against Tifa's defense.

Vincent spoke up, "Tifa, I'm with Cloud on this. He can't make up for the things he's done. No one can ever make up for what they've done. Those sins will haunt them forever."

Everyone stared at Vincent for a moment. Sometimes they forgot just how dark he can be.

"Okay… Moving on," Barret broke the silence, "Yuffie you can't marry a turk. It's gotta be like illegal or something."

"Ugh!" Yuffie jumped up on her feet, "I chose to get myself into this and I will choose what happens from here. I'm a big girl you guys."

"Come on Yuffie, we all know that," Barret took a big swig of beer, "But we also know you have a habit of getting yourself into mega trouble! We're just looking out for you."

"Well you guys don't have to worry about me and Reno," Yuffie shook her head.

Tifa took in a deep breath and thought about what Yuffie was doing. It was crazy, but… Who was Tifa to judge? Cloud made her crazy all the time and she just put up with it. Maybe it was the same for Yuffie and Reno?

"Guys, we should throw them an engagement party. Show them that we support whatever makes them happy," Tifa breathed.

"What?!" Cloud looked irritated.

Cloud couldn't believe what Tifa was suggesting. Reno was their enemy. Even with Shinra gone, Reno still wanted to rebuild the company that drained the world of it's life source. How could she be supporting this.

"I think Cloud means to say he doesn't think that's a great idea," Vincent spoke up.

Cloud nodded.

Barret considered it. Then it hit him. Maybe if they supported them, Yuffie would wake up and realize that Reno was bad all on her own. He smiled at Tifa.

Barret nodded his head, "Well I think it's a great idea. We might not like the idea of Yuffie getting herself into trouble, but if Yuffie and Reno are absolutely sure that this is what they want, who are we to stop them?"

"Thank you Barret, Tifa. Se not everyone thinks I'm making a mistake," Yuffie smiled brightly. At least she could count on them to stand by her crazy decision.

"Yeah, well I won't be there," Cloud left the room, and Yuffie winced.

"He'll come around," Tifa sweatdropped.

"What about you Vincent?" Yuffie craned her neck to see him.

She didn't always care about what other people thought, but Vincent had grown on her. She found she respected him. Maybe because she respected the fact that Vincent felt like he could never make up for the past, but he was still with AVALANCHE and he was still trying. That took more strength than Yuffie had in her entire being. It was admirable.

"I'll make an appearance, but you know I'm not one for big crowds," Vincent shrugged and went back to being interested in the solitude of his corner, all the way across the bar.

"Okay," Tifa nodded, "Then it's settled. We will be throwing you an engagement party. And Yuffie I want details! I want to know about when you and Reno first started dating, and what your first date was like, and-Yuffie?"

But Yuffie was already on her way out, "Sorry Tifa! I just remembered something."

"Wait, are we really going through with this?" Barret looked at Tifa. When she didn't answer right away, he finished off his beer and asked for more.

Shrugging, Tifa handed him another beer, "It's her life Barret."

"Yeah, but aren't we her friends? We can't just let her do this to herself?" Barret popped the lid off his beer and took another swig before slamming it down hard on the table in frustration.

"Um, we can't exactly control her," Tifa shrugged.

Cloud re-entered the room and ruffled his hair, "Like anyone can control Yuffie. Hand me something strong Tifa."

"What you're on her side?!" Barret shouted almost knocking his beer off the counter. He'd just watched Cloud storm out and then change in his mind completely in a matter of minutes. Was everyone going bonkers today? Yuffie couldn't marry Reno. It just couldn't happen. It was like Marlene growing up and getting older. Marlene couldn't grow up, and Yuffie couldn't get married to Reno end of story.

"What do you have in mind?" Cloud countered Barret.

"You want me to threaten Reno?" Vincent suggested.

"Yeah!" Barret through his fist in the air. Now they were talking. Why is it that Vincent was the one making any sense at the moment?

"I'll grab him, and you scare him deal?" Cloud smirked.

All three boys earned a glare from Tifa, "Look Yuffie's our friend. And we are going to support her no matter what she decides and I don't want to hear any different. You hear me?!"

Cloud nodded his head, but he rolled his eyes when Tifa's back was turned. He looked to Barret and Vincent and nodded. They would do what they had too.

XXXXX

Rubbing his sore head, Reno plopped down in his seat in the Shinra helicopter. He'd just told Rude that he got engaged and Rude's reaction was to hit him over the head.

"What the #*! , man!? What was that for? I thought you'd be happy, now we can all hang together again," Reno huffed flipping on a few switches on the control panel.

Rude just shook his head, "Yuffie?"

Reno shrugged, "What's wrong with Yuffie?"

"Cloud?" Rude shook his head as he got in on the other side of the copter and started flipping switches on his side.

"Please, you liked Tifa a while back how is this any different?" Reno rolled his eyes, "And it's not like Cloud has a thing for Yuffie the way he does for Tifa. Yuffie just happens to hang around him a lot. They're friends."

Rude stretched and cracked his knuckles, his fingers itching to take control of the helicopter and get their job over with. All he wanted was another day punched in and out, easy as pie. Even if Reno never made it easy. Never once.

Sighing, Rude refrained from starting up the ignition and kept the plane in idle, "Reno you've done a lot of stupid stuff. I've always kept my mouth shut, but this? I mean Yuffie? Are you sure she's not just another girl?"

Rude didn't say, 'Just another girl you need chocolate and a guys night out to get over,' but Reno knew what he meant. Reno wasn't exactly every girls dream boyfriend. Most girls went out with him a couple times and then got mad at him for not paying enough attention, and they left angry and upset. Everyone of his exes were angry about him spending to much time with the Turks or out on jobs. They were all annoying as ever.

Reno crossed his arms, "Well, Yuffie's not like them," he thought out loud. Number one, Yuffie wasn't really his girl, so a marriage wouldn't end up complicating things by her getting all needy, and even if she did get needy…

"She knows you and Elena. She's hung out with us before. All of Cloud's gang has been out with us at one time or another. Even if we aren't exactly close with any of them. So, it's not like I'll have to purposely leave her out of anything," Reno smiled, "Not that Yuffie would ever let me leave her out anyway. She'd probably tag along even if I told her not to."

'Especially if I told her not to,' Reno thought to himself.

Rude looked Reno over one last time. He was serious. Rude couldn't remember Reno ever being serious about a girl, ever.

"Must be pretty special," Rude remarked as he finally pushed the button that started the engine.

Reno smirked, "You could say that," after all he wouldn't marry just anybody. Yuffie was the only girl he knew that probably wouldn't drive him completely crazy. She wouldn't be pushing for his back story and she wouldn't be disappointed when she found out what it was. That Reno was just Reno.

He lived and average life, and he worked for Shinra because it paid the bills. End of story. Yuffie was a girl who accepted that part of him. He wasn't expected to be something or someone he wasn't. Yuffie would never force him into anything he didn't want to do.

Unless it involved materia.

Reno smirked at that thought, and Rude looked him over like he was crazy. Not that Rude didn't always give him that look anyway. Rude was always more practical. It was why they got along so well.

Reno taught Rude to come out of his shell and Rude taught Reno to hold back a little on the crazy. Yin and Yang. Always.

"You sure you know what you're doing?" Rude asked one last time before he lifted the copter off the ground.

The redhead leaned back in his chair, "Eh? Who knows? Maybe not. But she said yes so- Oh! Right I almost forgot, I want you're opinion on what I'm gonna do. Where is that materia?"

Reno unclipped his seatbelt and shifted himself so he was able to sift through things in the back of the plane. This would've been fine except for the fact that Reno brought his foot up and hit one of the controls causing the helicopter to go up and Rude's face to go from calm to scared out of his mind.

He tried to get Reno's attention, but Reno didn't seem to want to listen.

"What? Hold on a second will you? Geesh, I can't believe you're off the ground already. We'll have plenty of time to search that new location after I grab this-oof!"

They landed. Rude shook his head. It was cold and the copter was totaled. Snow was everywhere smushing Rude and Reno together.

Rude just glared at Reno who shrugged, "That was my fault wasn't it?"

Rude nodded and Reno sweatdropped.

Rude just shook his head and rolled his eyes, 'Good luck with this knucklehead, Yuffie. You're going to need it,' he thought.


	3. Babe

Chapter 3: Babe

Yuffie sat in her apartment, dialing the number on her phone, begging the stars that Reno would pick up. She wasn't sure how to explain everything on voicemail. And, of course, who knew who would be listening when he played his voicemail. The last thing Yuffie needed was her friends finding out that the wedding was sort of a hoax. They would never let Yuffie get married if they knew the truth. And if that happened, it was back to arranged marriages and suitors who were old and hairless.

Yuffie cringed as the thought of the old guy with only one hair stood out in her mind, again. His wrinkles clearly defined and burning their image into Yuffie's memories one at a time, until her mind felt as if it were trying to trace out a map of the entire world in each and every crack on the man's skin.

"Yo! Reno here!"

Thank the lifestream Reno answered before Yuffie started imagining wrinkles in other places than the old guys…face…

Shaking the thoughts from her head, Yuffie giggled awkwardly, "Hey! Long time no see!"

"Yuffie, babe! What's going on?"

Babe? That was new.

"Well, the guys want to throw us a party, and they want to ask all kinds of questions about our first date," nervous Yuffie paused, she had never asked anyone out before and under the circumstances, she wasn't real sure as to how to ask, "I don't think they would understand that we weren't really a couple before this, so I don't really want to tell them that we weren't… So I was thinking that maybe we should have one. A first date that is. I mean since we are going to be married and all."

Thoughts crossed her mind that made her panic, like what if he thought the whole idea was stupid? Or what if he was just joking about getting married and she took it the wrong way?

"Wow, a girl asking me out on the first date. I don't know whether to be impressed that my Yuffie is so confident, or upset that I didn't ask such a hot girl out before this," Reno teased.

"Reno!" Yuffie jumped on her bed, "Don't make me regret asking!" he was teasing her and she would get back at him for that if he continued.

Reno laughed, "Okay! Okay. I was actually going to call you later and ask you anyway. Since we are getting married and all."

Yuffie knew Reno couldn't see her sticking out her tongue, but she was still doing it.

"I'll see you around eight?" Reno asked.

Yuffie nodded, and then remembering that Reno couldn't see her, she spoke up, "Great, eight it is."

"Kay, see yah later Babe!" Reno bid her farewell.

Babe, again. That would take some getting used to. Yuffie Kisagari was not nobodies baby. Or she never used to be.

"Bye! See yah later!" Yuffie ended the call before she said something stupid.

Yuffie sighed, well there it was. Reno was serious. The engagement thing actually happened.

"Now what to wear?" Yuffie asked herself as she looked at her massive walk-in closet (it was where she kept all her costumes for stealth missions as a thief. She always had to be prepared to be anything). It dawned on her that she hadn't asked Reno where they were going, and she hated to bother him a second time. She could only hear the word Babe so much before she got annoyed ant the whole sham marriage ended before it started.

Sure, Yuffie knew that she shouldn't marry him. She didn't love Reno, but did she really believe in love anyway? She was a thief. She'd always known that emotions get in the way. Business was better when it was upfront without strings attached. And when she really thought about it, Reno was lonely and she needed a husband to make her Dad happy. This was a business deal that worked out for both of them. She convinced herself that it would never be anything more.

Then, she looked at the phone and the word Babe echoed in her mind again. Taking in a deep breath Yuffie whispered the word, 'business,' to herself a few times before her mind cleared and she was able to start thinking about other things.

She would just have to guess as far as what kind of date Reno would be. Would he be fun, practical, fancy, or romantic. By just hearing herself think, Yuffie knew instantly what kind of date Reno was. He was definitely the woo the girl with romance type. Yuffie imagined Reno getting the girl all hyped up so he could boost his own ego. The girl would praise him like crazy, Reno would be full of himself, and then Reno would get bored and move on.

The only thing that scared her was that the marriage was more of an arrangement, than a marriage. Maybe Reno didn't think of her romantically. Even if he did call her Babe. Which meant no romantic evening and the possibility of looking like a fool if she showed up with a romantic outfit and Reno was in sweats and took her to pizza. Yuffie most certainly did not like looking like a fool. But she knew if Reno really did want to be romantic, just to fill his own head up with lies, she didn't want to be in jeans and a t-shirt either.

Sighing, Yuffie searched through her racks of clothing. She would have to play it safe and do something fancy, but comfortable. The little black dress with flats that is every girls go to would work just fine.

Hair and makeup would be another thing entirely.

XXXXX

Rude shook his head at Reno.

"What?" Reno looked at him.

"You haven't even been out with the girl once, and you're gonna marry her. You really are crazy, aren't you?" Rude shook his head.

Reno shrugged, "Eh, I have to be to hang around you."

"Oh please, you're jealous you can't be as good as all this. I know," Rude laughed.

"Yeah totally," Reno spoke on sarcasm.

After a moment or two of silence, Rude and Reno were forced to go back to the problem at hand. They were still stuck in a helicopter with very little room to move.

"So, think we should call Elena?" Reno sighed knowing they were going to get a real good talking too. Still, it was better than calling Shinra. That would be suicide. If he knew they crashed another chopper into a mountain before take off…

"She's gonna say, 'you should never send a man to do a woman's job," Rude groaned. He might have been dating Elena, but that didn't make her any less annoying. She was still the same girl she was when she joined the Turks way back when.

"You could… Nah…" Rude breathed.

"What?" Reno rolled his eyes. This was who Rude was. He didn't always speak his mind, so Reno had to get the info out of him one way or another.

"Nah, never mind," Rude breathed.

"Rude spit it out already," Reno eyed him angrily.

"Well, I was gonna say you could ask Yuffie, but-"

"No way! Absolutely not! Avalanche just got on peaceful terms with us. And Shinra, just think about what would happen if he found out I had Yuffie help us. I might as well call Cloud," Reno could've hit Rude upside the head, if only he could've maneuvered that way.

"Well, you are going to marry her, and you said she's your Babe, so how is that any different than-"

"Because what I do on my own time and what I do for Shinra are to separate things. Always have been, always will be," Reno huffed. Rude pulling the 'your Babe' card did make Reno rethink things though. She wasn't just a girl in Cloud's gang anymore.

Rude shrugged, "That's why I said to forget it. I'll just call Elena."

Reno groaned, "Fine, I'll call Yuffie."

Except his hand slipped and instead of calling Yuffie he called…

"Strife delivery service."

That was Clouds voice. Reno had dialed Cloud's number. He didn't even know he had Cloud's number in his phone.

Reno yelped and dropped the evil device. Was this punishment? It was punishment. He would have to tell Yuffie that he couldn't marry her. What was he thinking?

"I'm definitely going to have to get caller ID," Cloud muttered, "Welp, whoever you are. It's not my problem." and hung up.

"So, now that I can't reach the phone, I guess Elena's our only option huh?" Reno sweatdropped and Rude dialed the number.

Of course, Reno knew that he shouldn't let Cloud rattle him like that. Still, it wasn't so much that Reno was afraid of Cloud. He wasn't. It was more that Reno didn't want to get on Cloud's bad side, unless he had to. The less fighting and arguments Reno had, the more time he had to relax and live a little. This was why Reno tried so hard to not irritate Cloud. It just happened to be that everything irritated Cloud.

Honestly, Reno probably would've avoided Cloud all together if it wasn't for Yuffie. She was the only one, who no matter how bad things got was always trying to lighten things up and make things more fun. He admired that quality in a person. It made hanging around the Avalanche gang that much easier. And of course he had to hang around them to go to Tifa's bar, which was the only bar with the best beer for miles.

Marrying Yuffie wouldn't be such a bad thing either. He'd have someone to come home to when he was lonely, someone to go out with when Rude went out with Elena, and most importantly someone who wouldn't cling onto him like their lives depended on it. It was a whole stress free, simple situation.

That's how little Reno knew about marriage. It is hardly ever stress free and uncomplicated. Is it worth it? Of course. But simple?

Never.


End file.
